1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to taking orders for goods and services over telephone or a computer network, and in particular, for taking such orders automatically while building a relationship data base.
2. Description of Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 5,915,246 (Patterson et al.) shows an ATM type service “which operates in a predictive manner, in that when a user enters their card, the machine identifies the user, predicts the transaction most likely to be requested by that user, and presents one or more relevant messages, such as ‘Do you require £20?’ or ‘Do you require a mini statement?’, in accordance with that user's habitual transaction request or requests.” It is a fully automated system for a customer who is present at the machine, with only customer intervention, and it is designed to work only with existing customers.
Both U.S. Pat. No. 5,737,726 (Cameron et al.) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,832,451 (Flake et al.) show systems where the customer communicates directly with an agent. The computer system retains customer preferences and other information, but it works through a human agent.
The Internet has numerous web sites with automatic ordering, but such sites for ordering books or music are not adapted for repeat orders of the same or similar products and do not allow for product specification, such as is common in ordering pizza, where a customer will specify size, toppings and crust type. In addition, the systems to do appear to be equally adaptable for network or telephone access.